Biggles Works It Out/plot
Chapter 1: Biggles Has Something to Say With no cases on their desk, Biggles studies his collection of newspaper clippings and muses that modern criminals would use aircraft just as bandits of old used fast horses and camels. In one case of a gold robbery in the Australian outback, the great distances involved and the mysterious absence of tracks at the scene of crime all pointed to an aircraft being used. Long range aircraft would make the reach of such criminals truly international. That Australian crime might be linked with a similar raid on an emerald mine in Bolivia. To tackle such international criminals who used aircraft would really require cooperation between the police forces of different countries and Biggles lamented that not much of this was happening. Chapter 2: A Frenchman Sets a Poser It is therefore a welcome coincidence that, just at this time, a French policeman named Marcel Brissac should call on Biggles. Marcel had recently been in charge of aviation related crimes in France and wanted advice. Biggles is attracted to the idea of international cooperation in the matter of aviation crime and asks Marcel if he has anything to work on. Marcel relates a strange tale of two sightings of an unusual Douglas DC-3 fitted with a tricycle undercarriage. At one time it carried French markings, at a later time, Portuguese, but neither country had such an aircraft on its registers. Biggles suggests that Marcel make a round of French aerodromes in North Africa where the DC-3 had first been sighted to see if there had been more sightings. Meanwhile he would consult Air Commodore Raymond on the next step. Chapter 3: Modern Days, Modern Ways Raymond clears the way for Biggles to fly to Australia, where the police welcome a second look at the gold robbery. Biggles, Ginger and Bertie fly their Wellington to Barula Creek where they meet the mine manager John Brand. Brand is happy to help and they overfly the scene of the robbery at Sandy Bottoms, taking aerial photos. Brand also tells Biggles about a visit from a journalist Dick Canton in an American light aircraft not long before the robbery. Chapter 4: The Trail Takes Shape The photos show up wheel tracks which look like they were caused by a tricycle undercarriage. Biggles flies out to Sandy Bottoms and uses the aircraft propellors to blow off the loose sand from the surface. The tracks are revealed and Joe, Brand's native Australian tracker finds a toothpick wrapper from the Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo and a greenish-grey button. "I would have come to Australia for less," Biggles declares. The Wellington stops at Darwin on the way home and they spot an Aeronca aircraft matching the description of Canton's. The owner, Len Holmes, reveals that he had rented it to Canton. Strangely, the Aeronca's tanks were still half full although it had gone to Barula Creek and back. Biggles surmises that it must have refuelled from another aircraft. This leads West, the air traffic control officer to remember that a DC-3 had passed overhead Darwin heading inland but had not made radio contact. Chapter 5: Investigations Back in London, the police labs confirm that the button was of German make and came from a greenish-grey jacket. Meanwhile Marcel turns up, having made enquiries in North Africa. Nobody else had seen the DC-3, but on a related question of possible landing grounds, some pilots told him about El Asile, an artificial oasis in the Sahara desert built by an eccentric rich man named Monsieur Bourdau as a refuge for ibexes. He had since died and the place had been taken over by a religious group, "The White Prophets of Peace". Biggles asks Marcel to make discreet enquiries about the White Prophets. Meanwhile Algy and Bertie would go to Monaco, check in at the Hotel de Paris and hope to spot a man who picked his teeth with a missing greenish-grey jacket button. Just before departure, Smyth tells them a journalist named Canton had been hanging around on the pretext of wanting to do a story about the Air Police. A close inspection of Algy's Auster reveals a gelignite bomb taped to an exhaust. The enemy is already on the job! Chapter 6: A Man Minus a Button After 5 days, Algy really does meet a man who fits the description completely. He follows the man and searches his clothes while he goes for a swim and discovers that he is Wilhelm Groot with an address at the Villa Hirondelle. Later that day, Groot meets up with a man fitting the description of Canton and they drive off. Algy follows them to their destination: the Villa, near the village of Eze. Over a meal at Eze, Algy learns from a waitress that the villa is owned by one Count Heinrich Horndorf, an extremely rich Austrian or German. Returning to Monaco, Algy is shocked to find that Bertie has checked out and his room is vacant. Chapter 7: More Problems Later in the day, Algy gets a letter from Bertie containing a left luggage ticket. Algy fetches the parcel from the airport, whichturns out to contain the content's of Bertie's pockets, including his passport and money. Algy is puzzled and decides to return to England to report to Biggles. The next day, at the airport, Algy bumps into Canton just as Canton is approaching his Auster with a hacksaw, with the intent of sabotaging the aircraft a second time. Algy is able to stall until Canton is forced to abandon his attempt when someone else enters the hangar whereupon he leaves. Algy takes off for England. There is more surprising news. Marcel turns up angrily reporting that while he had been scouting El Asile, he had been shot at by Bertie flying in a Hurricane. Ginger doesn't believe it. Whatever Bertie shoots at, he hits. But Biggles has a different explanation. If Bertie missed, it must mean he was not trying to hit Marcel. He must have been fluying and shooting against his will. Incredible as it may seem, Bertie appeared to have struck a hot trail and soehow had infiltrated the El Asile location and become employed there. This would also account for him hastily abandoning all his belongings. Chapter 8: Bertie Takes a Job Biggles had been accurate in his deductions. Bertie had been keeping watch at Nice Airport. He noticed a blue painted Mosquito on the tarmac and walked over to take a closer look out of professional interest. It turned out to belong to Canton! On the spot, Bertie plays the part of an ex-R.A.F. pilot, down on his luck having lost all his money at the casino. Canton is interested in his service record and before long Canton actually recruits Bertie into his gang. While Canton makes a call, Bertie hastily deposits all his personal effects for Algy. Bertie is then taken to the Villa Hirondelle where he is formerly inducted into the gang by the leader, von Horndorf. Bertie is told he is to go to North Africa with Canton where he will fly a Hurricane to protect one his his properties there. Chapter 9: Algy Learns the Answers Biggles sends Algy back to the Riviera and to resume surveillance on the Villa Hirondelle. He notices a van leaving the villa and follows it all the way to a disused airstrip on the Plaine de la Crau. Eavesdropping outside a hut, he spots Groot and now von Stalhein! The two are later joined by Canton and a Mexican pilot named Luis Leguez who fly in on a DC-3 with a tricycle undercarriage. Von Stalhein is suspicious of the new pilot Canton has recruited and soon puts him wise that it is Bertie! The four men decide not to upset the Count about the big mistake--Canton would fly out to El Asile himself and "fix" Bertie. Chapter 10: A Trip to Remember Concerned about Bertie's safety, Algy stows away on Canton's DC-3. In mid-flight, he holds up Canton with a gun but he is not submitting tamely. There follows a violent scuffle which almost results in the aircraft crashing into the sea. Algy finally subdues Canton and takes the controls. Approaching the Algerian coast, the DC-3 is intercepted and forced to land by a Morane piloted by Marcel. Marcel is aghast to see Algy emerged from the DC-3, but Algy is actually glad for the interception. Marcel could take Canton off his hands and forward a message to Biggles. Chapter 11: El Asile Algy arrives at El Asile and manages to convince Odenski, in charge of operations there, that he is a new pilot who has taken over because Groot is sick. After a rest he plans to do the return flight with another "load" for the Count. Bertie is surprised to see Algy but plays along. In the evening, Algy prepares to leave but is surprised to learn that the DC-3 is being load with bags of "fertilizer". He had expected loads of bar gold. Algy starts his engines, confident that Bertie would have, according to plan, stowed himself away on board. But just as he taxis out, a Mosquito comes in to land and discharges von Stalhein and Groot! Von Stalhein soon understands what is going on and shoots at the DC-3, hitting it several times while Algy performs a hasty take off. A few minutes in the air, a third person shows up in the cabin--it turns out to be Emile, a French deserter who had joined the gang and had befriended Bertie. Like Bertie he had plotted his escape for some time and must have figured that stowing away on the DC-3 offered the best chance. But Emile has bad news. The main tank has been holed by von Stalhein's shots and fuel is spraying uncontrollably into the cabin. Chapter 12: Biggles Takes a Turn After getting the news from Marcel, Biggles and Ginger head for Marseilles where they join Joudrier and Marcel in a raid on the landing ground on the Plaine de la Crau. Unfortunately none of the senior gang members were there. Joudrier next planned to raid the Villa Hirondelle. Meanwhile, Biggles departs with Ginger in their Mosquito for Insalah. Algy had earlier told Marcelhe would head for this French outpost after extracting Bertie. Chapter 13: Smoke in the Sahara Biggles and Ginger arrive at Insalah but find that Algy is not there. Marcel joins them and has bad news. The raid on the Villa Hirondelle also failed to net any of the senior gang members nor any incriminating evidence. All that had been found there had been bags of fertilizer. Later in the day, they get news that a French airliner had spotted a DC-3 down in the desert near El Asile. Believing this is Algy's aircraft, they head for it, only to discover that no one is on board. Biggles sends Marcel back to Insalah to update Joudrier while Biggles begins to search the surrounding area for his friends, telling Marcel he would end up at El Asile if he could not find them anywhere else. Chapter 14: Enemies or Allies? Biggles could not have guessed what had happened to Algy, Bertie and Emile. After force landing their DC-3, a large raiding party of Tuareg tribesmen passed by. They were on their way to attack El Asile in revenge for refusing them water and killing two of their warriors. Algy was unable to convince them to wait for the French police. So that they would not give the alarm, the Tuareg more or less took them prisoner and forced them to go along. Chapter 15: The Sun Dictates During the Tuareg attack, a Mosquito takes off from the valley, narrowly missing the high rocks and Algy and Bertie. It turns out to be Groot and von Stalhein who have decided to abandon their colleagues. Von Stalhein even shoots Odenski when he tries to stop them. The Tuareg depart, leaving Algy, Bertie and Emile to their own devices. Biggles soon joins them, followed by Marcel and then a DC-3 with Joudrier and a large force of gendarmes. Chapter 16: Where the Trails Ended Joudrier's raid turns out to be easier than expected. Those gang members who had survived the Tuareg attack had all gathered in the canteen and were all drunk. They offer little resistance to the police. However Joudrier is puzzled by the absence of the stolen gold. Now Biggles remembers some school chemistry. Going over to the lab which the police had found there, he performs a few simple procedures and precipitates the gold from the slag which had been labelled as "fertilizer". There the case ended. When the Mosquito with Groot and von Stalhein arrived at the Plaine de la Crau, Groot was shot but von Stalhein managed to escape. Horndorf and Leguez also disappeared but their bodies were later found next to a crashed aircraft on a Swiss mountainside. Category:Plot summaries